1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a musical pick and, more particularly, to a brush plectrum for stringed musical instruments.
2. Description of Related Art
Plectrums or picks for stringed musical instruments, such as guitars, mandolins, and basses have been utilized for many years. Such plectrums are generally oval or tear drop shaped, being flat for holding between thumb and finger(s), and made of resilient or non resilient materials in a range of thicknesses.
Conventional plectrums have been designed for use with various stringed instrument, string types, and playing styles, utilizing a range of materials in a vast array of styles depending on the intended use. However, such plectrums have limited ability to vary the tonal qualities and volume of the sound, relying solely on the impact and release of the string on the plectrum to cause vibration of the string. Moreover, this single impact of the string upon the plectrum creates an undesirable clicking sound when each string is engaged and provides no means of varying the tonal qualities once the plectrum disengages the string. The present invention eliminates this clicking sound, while allowing greater control over a variety of tones.
There are several state of the art plectrums for the strumming or picking of stringed musical instruments. The Des Gaines U.S. Pat. No. 4,248,128 discloses a guitar pick array having a multitude of resilient plectrums, installed in a common handle that are used in strumming a guitar. The array is strummed across the strings of the guitar, striking each string a number of times in relation to the number of picks in the array. This pick array has the disadvantage, however, of being rather cumbersome, and of producing an undesirable clicking sound when the picks engage the strings of the guitar.
The patents to Cavallo, U.S. Pat. No. 4,651,614, and to Lukehart, U.S. Pat. No. 4,790,227, are directed to multiple or dual plectrums. These designs display, however, the drawback of creating an undesirable clicking sound when strummed across the strings but also are unwieldy and make articulation or picking of single strings difficult.
Other devices for strumming or picking musical instruments are illustrated in Rieneck U.S. Pat. No. 5,194,680 and Balog U.S. Pat. No. 5,271,308.
None of the above inventions and patents, either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the present invention as described hereinafter and claimed.